Is doubling numbers on your bio lying? Ask ethics guru, Mr. Vanguard

January 19, 2016

This is from Keith Raniere’s bio on www.keithraniere.com:

“As an entrepreneur, Keith Raniere transformed a five-person organization into a corporation of nearly 400,000 in a mere two years. His company, Consumers’ Buyline, Inc., was responsible for an estimated one billion dollars in product and service sales in its second full year of business and was featured on the American Spotlight. A millionaire at the age of thirty, Keith Raniere was worth $50 million only two years later.”

This is from an Albany Times Union story dated May 21, 1992:

Headline: Discount service target of probe pyramid scheme alleged

“Consumer Buylines Inc., a locally based discount buying service with 200,000 members nationally, is being investigated by authorities in New York and Maine and has been sued by the Arkansas attorney general for allegedly using deceptive trade practices….

The president of Consumer Buylines, Keith Raniere, denied the charge and said many officials misunderstood the operations of his 2- year-old company, which employs 200 workers and has a second office in Albany.

“With 200,000 sales people, sometimes things are said that are improper,” said Raniere. “If that was the case, we terminate them as affiliates”….

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Ok, so Keith Raniere says in his bio – he had a corporation of 400,000 in its second year.

He said to the Times Union – n the company’s second year – as an investigation into his company is looming in three states – and is about to shut down his operations – – that there were 200,000 member affiliates and 200 employees.